Favorite Recipes: Backcountry Pizza

BACKCOUNTRY PIZZA

We’ve used this recipe for over 20 years and it's a winner every time!  Of course, you can make this while RVing and car camping, too, but it is oh so fun to whip out a pizza on a backcountry stove when you are miles from the nearest road.  This recipe serves 4, or 2 very hungry people with some great leftovers for lunch the next day.

Check out the first 15 minutes of this video to learn how to cook pizza without an oven!

Before you go camping, put these ingredients in a Ziploc bag (one with no holes in it):

• 1.5 cups bread flour (we happen to love King Arthur, but use whatever flour you love)
• 1 cup all purpose flour 
• 1.5 tsp salt
• 1 package yeast (pizza yeast if you can find it)

About an hour before you want to start making pizza, add these ingredients to the bag:

• 3 TBSP olive oil (you will need additional olive oil for baking purposes.)
• 1 cup water (plus a bit more if your mix is dry)  

Remove air from the bag and reseal.  Knead ingredients in the bag until fully mixed and the dough begins to pull away from the side of the bag.  If the mix is a bit dry, add small amounts of water at a time and knead. 

Let rise in the sun for at least an hour. If it’s cold outside, tuck the bag under your shirt for warmth, making what we loving refer to as a “pizza baby.”

Cooking the pizza takes a bit of finesse, but once you get the technique down, it’s pretty easy.  It can be baked over a campfire or on your backcountry stove (it will take a good deal of fuel, so plan ahead).  We use the Bank’s FryBake pan for nearly everything and it is the rock star of this meal.  You can also make this in a Dutch oven, but good luck carrying that into the backcountry!

Prepare your toppings and sauté any veggies, etc. that you plan to use.   When cooked, put them in a pot with a lid to keep warm.

Spread half the dough into a well-oiled pan and flatten out.  Bake the bottom of the crust to a golden brown.  Note:  You will need to rotate the pan on the burner frequently to prevent it from burning the crust, see below.

Flip the dough over like a pancake and add sauce, cheese. etc.  Cover with the lid.  

Note:  If using a campfire, carefully add coals from the fire to the top of the lid.  
If using a backcountry stove, continue to turn the pizza ¼ turn every so often to heat and melt the toppings.  

When the toppings are melted, the bottom should be browned.  Carefully remove from pan and top with your favorites spices.  Enjoy!  Repeat with second half of dough.